Evening all,
Ive not long return from Chile and thought I would share a few pictures and stories from the trip. Im a member of the RAF Mountain Rescue Service (MRS) and our primary role is to rescue downed aircrew in the UK mountains or overseas. Although we dont have a combat role the RAF flies worldwide so should we lose an aircraft overseas it is highly likely the MRS would be one of the first units to respond. As a rescue organisation the MRS is often involved in other UK incidents and is sometimes offered as an asset to foreign governments who may not have dedicated rescue teams.
In order that MR Troops can effectively operate in a hostile environment overseas we regulary train with foreign SAR organisations and also have opportunities to exercise at high altitude and in developing countries. Both of these provide experiences (not all good!) not available in UK.
We gained authority to visit Chile as it has had a long friendly relationship with the UK and with easy access to the Andes provides an ideal training ground. Along with working with elements of the FACh (Chilean Air Force) that have a SAR role we hoped to climb a mountain called Navado Juncal at just under 6000m.
The plan was for the Chileans to accompany us for the first couple of weeks and carry out a glacial and acclimatisation program then we would return to the same area on our own after a rest to attempt Juncal.
Base Camp at 2600m:
Juncal proved to be an excellent choice for a training area as it was only two hours from Santiago the glacier we used for training was also relatively safe being dry (not covered in snow) and also had plenty of crevasses and ridges to climb on:
On the first phase we were lucky enough to fly in but on the second phase we entered via the road head. Flying is much easier! :
Training with the Chileans, these guys proved to really make the trip. Friendly and hospitable they had an excellent sense of humour and pulled out all stops to look after us:
Climbing higher this is Camp 1 at around 3300m. This place was a bit more austere although it did have clean water. Both here and BC had rock windbreaks which we used to shelter the tents and use as a cook shack:
My high point at 4000m, above this the route got really serious (and harder than the suggested guidebook grade). Some of the guys got to Camp 2 at 4700m but had a couple of miserable nights with heavy snow fall and a thunder storm. The route to the summit proved to be too dangerous with the risk of avalanche and rock fall so the decision was made to retreat:
About 30km down the Valley is the Chilean Army School of Mountaineering. Surprisingly they also had a MR role but on foot and horseback. Unlike the UK where the military operations are Joint Service there seemed to be like co-operation between the Army and the Air Force. This suggests that you may get either organisation depending where you have your accident, so dont rely on a helicopter! During both phases we looked after soldiers who were suffering from Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) after not acclimatizing correctly (climbing to high to fast) both were fine after some rest and fluids but in the spirit of MR we ensured they made it to the road head. The commandant of the school heard about this and invited us to the School to thank us for what we did. This felt a real privilege and we were treated as very special guests. Here is the school:
Those of you who have served in the military may like to note the daily flag raising and lowering with a difference:
An old School BV snow plough complete with machine guns for keeping the Argentineans out:
We finished back in Santiago which is a very modern developed city. Despite the noise and bustle it was a great place to relax for a day at the end of the trip. I hope you enjoyed reading please ask any questions.
Ive not long return from Chile and thought I would share a few pictures and stories from the trip. Im a member of the RAF Mountain Rescue Service (MRS) and our primary role is to rescue downed aircrew in the UK mountains or overseas. Although we dont have a combat role the RAF flies worldwide so should we lose an aircraft overseas it is highly likely the MRS would be one of the first units to respond. As a rescue organisation the MRS is often involved in other UK incidents and is sometimes offered as an asset to foreign governments who may not have dedicated rescue teams.
In order that MR Troops can effectively operate in a hostile environment overseas we regulary train with foreign SAR organisations and also have opportunities to exercise at high altitude and in developing countries. Both of these provide experiences (not all good!) not available in UK.
We gained authority to visit Chile as it has had a long friendly relationship with the UK and with easy access to the Andes provides an ideal training ground. Along with working with elements of the FACh (Chilean Air Force) that have a SAR role we hoped to climb a mountain called Navado Juncal at just under 6000m.
The plan was for the Chileans to accompany us for the first couple of weeks and carry out a glacial and acclimatisation program then we would return to the same area on our own after a rest to attempt Juncal.
Base Camp at 2600m:
Juncal proved to be an excellent choice for a training area as it was only two hours from Santiago the glacier we used for training was also relatively safe being dry (not covered in snow) and also had plenty of crevasses and ridges to climb on:
On the first phase we were lucky enough to fly in but on the second phase we entered via the road head. Flying is much easier! :
Training with the Chileans, these guys proved to really make the trip. Friendly and hospitable they had an excellent sense of humour and pulled out all stops to look after us:
Climbing higher this is Camp 1 at around 3300m. This place was a bit more austere although it did have clean water. Both here and BC had rock windbreaks which we used to shelter the tents and use as a cook shack:
My high point at 4000m, above this the route got really serious (and harder than the suggested guidebook grade). Some of the guys got to Camp 2 at 4700m but had a couple of miserable nights with heavy snow fall and a thunder storm. The route to the summit proved to be too dangerous with the risk of avalanche and rock fall so the decision was made to retreat:
About 30km down the Valley is the Chilean Army School of Mountaineering. Surprisingly they also had a MR role but on foot and horseback. Unlike the UK where the military operations are Joint Service there seemed to be like co-operation between the Army and the Air Force. This suggests that you may get either organisation depending where you have your accident, so dont rely on a helicopter! During both phases we looked after soldiers who were suffering from Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) after not acclimatizing correctly (climbing to high to fast) both were fine after some rest and fluids but in the spirit of MR we ensured they made it to the road head. The commandant of the school heard about this and invited us to the School to thank us for what we did. This felt a real privilege and we were treated as very special guests. Here is the school:
Those of you who have served in the military may like to note the daily flag raising and lowering with a difference:
An old School BV snow plough complete with machine guns for keeping the Argentineans out:
We finished back in Santiago which is a very modern developed city. Despite the noise and bustle it was a great place to relax for a day at the end of the trip. I hope you enjoyed reading please ask any questions.
